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Ignatius of Antioch

Epistle to Polycarp

Chapter 4

Exhortations.

Let not widows be neglected. Be thou, after the Lord, their protector1 and friend. Let nothing be done without thy consent; neither do thou anything without the approval of God, which indeed thou dost not, inasmuch as thou art stedfast. Let your assembling together be of frequent2 occurrence: seek after all by name.3 Do not despise either male or female slaves, yet neither let them be puffed up with conceit, but rather let them submit themselves4 the more, for the glory of God, that they may obtain from God a better liberty. Let them not long to be set free [from slavery] at the public expense, that they be not found slaves to their own desires.

Notes

  1. The word in the original (φροντιστὴς) denotes one who thinks or cares for another.↩
  2. Some refer the words to more frequent meetings, and others to these meetings being more numerous; no comparison is necessarily implied.↩
  3. i.e. so as to bring them out to the public assembly.↩
  4. Or, “act the part of slaves.”↩

Translation by Alexander Roberts, James Donaldson and Frederick Crombie: The Ante-Nicene Christian Library, vol. 1: The Apostolic Fathers (Edinburgh: T. & T. Clark, 1870).
Text from Project Gutenberg eBook #77576, proofread by Distributed Proofreaders from Internet Archive scans. Public domain.